


General Headcannons

by allthelovelybadones



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-19
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2020-03-08 06:38:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18889195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allthelovelybadones/pseuds/allthelovelybadones
Summary: When writing a fic, I believe it's good to have specific headcanons for your interpretation of a character. Especially when that character is Link, who doesn't talk and most characterization is up to the player. So I compiled these headcanons to write my story, One For Sorrow.This would probably work better in a Tumblr format, but I don't have a Tumblr for writing, so here.





	1. Apperance

**Author's Note:**

> This was written with Breath of the Wild!Link in mind. I feel like this goes without saying, but this is my interpretation of the character. If you disagree, let's have a healthy debate in the comments. 
> 
> Also, most of these thoughts were written as I played and continued through the story. I tried to edit out anything that went against the story, but I may have missed some. So forgive me if these aren't all canon-compliant. 
> 
> Also, I tried to break these up into categories, but some of them bleed over. So sorry about that.
> 
> Also, for a third and final time, this was a bulleted list in my google docs. I don't think these could be stand-alone paragraphs. If you know how to make it look better, then please tell me. Why is the bulleted list on ao3 so ugly?

  * Link’s eyes are very blue. A piercing blue. He stared down Lynels and Hinoxes, and once, Ganon with those eyes. His stare is intense, because he’s never learned any other way. Because of that, people can hardly keep eye contact with him. People can meet his eye, sure—I mean, he usually is always helping people, so they suspect he’s a very good person. But when they meet his intense state, they look away. Link’s gotten used to it, but if you hold his eye for longer than thirty seconds, he’ll turn away (and probably blush). 
    * Speaking of blushing, Link blushes all the way up to his ears and down to his chest, if he’s embarrassed enough. This very rarely happens, but when it does, it’s! so! cute!!


  * When he does speak, because it isn’t always avoidable, his voice is steady but rough. You can tell he doesn’t speak often, and it takes a few minutes of talking get it to “normal”. Even then, some words come out as scratchy and unnatural. 
    * One time, in a hoarse voice, he had to ask for a bed at an inn. He’ll never forget the way a nearby child flinched and whispered to their mom to ask if he was a monster in disguise. 
    * Occasionally, he’ll have to say a word a few times to pronounce it right, just because he’s so unused to talking. It’s another thing he hates because he thinks it makes him sound stupid. 
    * The way he talks also makes him stand out; he speaks very clearly and precisely, having been around Zelda and other noble folk for so long. His accent is a mix of common and proper, in a place where neither parties would really consider it their own way of talking. It’s another thing he’s insecure about. 
    * He thinks a lot about what he’s going to say before he says it, _if_ he says it. He feels like he represents Zelda, and doesn’t want anyone thinking she chooses incompetent people.


  * When he’s embarrassed, he’ll scratch the back of his head (think like when he visits the fairy fountains sometimes). It’s a quirk he takes from his mom, who used to run her fingers through her hair.


  * He’s insecure about his ears. He thinks they stick out more than any other Hylian. That’s one of the reasons he keeps two strands of hair to frame his face. To try and make them look smaller.


  * A short while after waking up, he hits a massive growth spurt. Doesn’t stop growing till his early twenties, and ends up about 6-6’4. Compared to most Hylinins, that’s pretty tall, but he doesn’t seem to notice since he visits the Zora and Gerudo so often.



 

  * Would sew mismatched patterns to patch holes or to make the hem longer. He does not care much about his appearance (besides his ears), and couldn’t care less about what he wears, as long as it offers good protection. If he ever had to fix his own clothes, he’d take scraps of material and patch it up. 
    * (I read a theory somewhere that Hyrule’s opinion on gender is pretty chill. Like, you say you're a girl, you’re a girl. That’s why Link can still get in Gerudo town even if you change right in front of the guards. I really like this idea and incorporate it into my own story.) Link is 100% down to wear whatever if he can fight in it. Skirts? Sure, as long as they don’t get in the way. Make-up? Fine, if it doesn’t stop him from kicking names and taking ass. 


  * Is totally unaware of how nice his hair is. He washes it when he can, cuts it only when it gets in the way (or he has to look presentable) and keeps it in that half up/half down look most the time. Despite all that, it’s still soft and pretty healthy, probably from how well he eats and how hydrated he keeps himself.


    * He's not bad at styling his hair. He had to do it sometimes when he dressed formally for the king. He's learned a little bit to keep himself looking presentable and a couple of different styles. 
    * Likes when people play with his hair, but not when they style it. Doesn't like having his hair in his face, and sometimes that has to happen for a specific hairstyle. If you put his hair in a simple braid or something, that's fine. He just hates sitting still for a long time, staring straight ahead and having pins and bands moved everywhere. 


  * Never really gets calluses on his hands. If he’s ever training with a sword or his bow, it always seems like he has to break a few days for royal duties. It doesn’t help that when he’s out exploring, he eats healing items. By then, his skin has time to heal and he’s back to square one. 
    * Sometimes wishes he did get calluses. Even after all this time, his fingers still sometimes hurt after firing an arrow or swinging a sword. 
    * In training, the other knights made fun of him good-naturedly. He used to really hate it, but doesn’t care anymore.


  * Has quite a few scars. They all have their own story and, by the time he remembers all he’s going to, he can recall how he got each one. 
    * It may be odd to have a favorite scar, but Link does. It’s one on his knee, almost gone now. He’d gotten it when he was seven or so, playing in the creek with his friends. He had fallen and scraped his knee. It’s one of the few scars he has that aren’t related to his line of duty. 
    * One scar he hates is a two inch long cut on his calf. When he first picked up a sword, standing in front of his father and other high ranking knights, the weight was large and clumsy in his hand. Unfamiliar, the first time he took a swing, the blade bounced off the training dummy and clanked to the ground, but not before nicking him on the calf. 
    * Another scar he likes, and that might take first place, is a thin white one on his right hip. He got it pushing himself in front of his S/O when a Yoga clan member attacked. They have a matching one along the left side of their torso. 
      * In quiet moments, if they let him, he’ll trace his fingers over the corresponding marks. He likes them because they bind the two of them together. He’d never want his S/O to get hurt, of course, but given the chance, he wouldn’t change anything. 
    * He has some heavy scarring from Guardian blasts. His right forearm, where he held his sword, is one of the worst places. Another spot is his left bicep, the part of his arm unprotected by his shield. There are some other places, like around his left ear and parts of his shoulders and back that were also hit. 
    * All things considered, the scars healed rather nicely. The affected areas are pink or light red, but other than that, completely unnoticeable. 
    * His right forearm and left bicep are where it’s worst. There, there are a few harsh purple marks where the skin couldn’t heal all the way. He hates these spots the most and tries to cover them up as much as possible.




	2. Personality

  * Link is a survivalist. He can hunt and fish and live off the land just fine. He can be in the wilderness for days without seeing anyone else and be totally fine. But he wouldn’t want to do that forever. If given the option, his dream place to live would be a more rural town, close enough to a place he can explore, but still near people. 
    * Link loves exploring, finding new things. But he doesn’t want to be alone for too long. He doesn’t know why, but that feeling in his chest of being alone is only good for so long. Then it becomes oppressive. 
  * He hates the feeling of being alone, especially after waking up. As a kid, he grew up a pretty normal life. Happy and bubbly, pretty popular, despite being on the more quiet side. He grew up with a lot of kids that were around his age and had a pretty big friend group. 
    * When he was told he was the inheritor of the courage triforce, he had to leave his home and train with the knights, at around age 10. He was sad to leave his home, but not too worried— his dad was a high-ranking knight, and felt safe around him. Even after he started his training, he was around a lot of people. 
    * It wasn’t until he became the princess’ appointed knight that he started being on his own more. It was about age 14 when he had to make a trip from Castle Town to Gerudo Desert by himself. At the time, he felt like an adult, being trusted to handle the journey alone. But he soon realized how lonely he was. Even if he didn’t talk, he missed the sound of people around him. It seemed like he’d travel for hours alone with only the sound of his horse. After that, he decided he didn’t like traveling alone. 
  * Insecure about failing Zelda. There are so many people dead because of him, he feels. So many people he let down. So anything Zelda wants him to do, he will. Any time of the day, he’d do anything for her, even past his duties as a knight. She could call him at 2 a.m. to get her food and he would. 
    * Many people around see this and think it’s cute; that maybe he has a crush. The reality is he wants to desperately prove to Zelda that he’s not a total failure. He honestly does feel like she should blame him for everything that’s happened in the last century, and would run himself ragged to make her happy. 
    * (personally, as a side note, I think this is the reason Link— this one at least— can ever be romantically tied to her. After that traumatic experience, he’d never completely and fully forgive himself, nor fully accept Zelda’s forgiveness. You can’t have a healthy relationship with someone when you think you owe them something, or that they’re above you). 
  * He doesn’t like talking about his life before waking up. He hates it when people persist. It reminds him of all that he’s lost. About how he failed everyone. 
    * But he’ll open up when it’s on his own terms. He likes when there’s someone there to listen then, even if it’s a stranger. It makes him feel like he’s keeping alive the memories of those who died. 
  * He’s actually pretty smart. Next to Zelda, it’s not as noticeable (but I mean—Goddess of Wisdom). But he’s a pretty fast learner and will dedicate himself to something if he’s really passionate about it. 
    * Not book smart, per se, but Street Smart™. Good common sense and at finding practical solutions when others can’t. 
    * Good at solving puzzles too, as seen by the Shrines. Sometimes sees it as a game, other times as a nuisance, depending what kind of mood he’s in, but always as a challenge. 
  * He can’t sit still long enough to read, even if it’s something he likes, but he does like it when people read to them. There’s something about the platonic intimacy of it that makes him feel better. Like it’s someone he can trust. 
    * He likes it when people reading something they’re passionate about. He can tell when they are and thinks it sounds better. Therefore, he doesn't really care what they read. 
    * If he had to choose, though, he’d probably most enjoy factual books. Adventure and fantasy books are his everyday life and novels require remembering characters, location, plot, etc. which is hard to do if he goes months without reading/listening to that book. So he enjoys stuff about Hyrule, it’s animals and locations. Seeing what he has yet to find and explore. 
  * Link likes when people sing. Even if it’s not good, he thinks songs are just another form of storytelling. So listening to someone sing, especially if it’s a song they wrote themselves, is something he enjoys. (serenade him with a song you wrote and he will _swoon_ ). 
    * If it’s a particularly moving song, he’ll write what he can remember down. It feels like a story all on its own, and he wants to remember as much as he can. 
  * He doesn’t like going to sleep. Will put it off for days. Sleeping, especially while lying down or cold, reminds him of his hundred-year bath. While unreasonable, he knows, he thinks he could wake up, another hundred years in the future, everyone he knows and loves dead... again. 
    * This fear fades with time. Some nights, though, he still wakes up with his heart pounding in a cold sweat. No idea what his dream was about, but that it had to do with the Shrine of Resurrection. It during this time he can’t be alone. He’ll seek out anyone he can, be it friend or even an innkeeper. 
  * Being around too many people, after so long of not being around anyone, makes him lonely. It’s contradictory, yes, but he feels like he shouldn’t be with these people. He wonders how many of them he’s met their parents, grandparents, in passing. It makes him feel like a ghost, out of time and should be long dead. 
    * Befriending people also makes him sad sometimes. He was never supposed to meet them. They were supposed to grow up in a safe world. And they didn’t. And it’s his fault. 
  * Likes walking. But not alone. But the few select people whose company he truly enjoys are always welcome to join him. In fact, offering a walk is a sure way to get him to feel more comfortable in your company. 
  * Puts off taking care of himself. He always puts other people first, and sometimes just forgets. Like, less in a _‘I feel bad and can’t even get out of bed’_ and more a _‘I went on an adventure and I didn’t notice I hadn’t eaten in a while until my shaky hands messed up my bow shot’_. 
  * Can sew alright, but only to mend. Couldn’t actually follow a pattern.
    * His mother was a seamstress in Castle Town. While he wasn’t expected to follow in her footsteps (if anything, people thought he’d be like his father and become a knight) he did like spending time with her. He picked up some of her techniques, but could never sit still enough to learn anything more. 
    * Post-100-year-nap, in his house in Hatano, he’ll keep a basket of scrap material from any clothes that are savigable. It comes in handy when he needs to mend his clothes, but he doesn’t know how this habit started. All he knows is that sometimes when he looks at it, he feels sad. 
  * Learns a lot of things by doing them. First, he’ll watch someone, listen to their explanation, then try it himself. He’ll gladly listen to input on what to correct, them practice it until he masters it. 
    * If he’s not listening to people teach him, he enjoys just hearing about their craft. It all links back to the passionate thing. 
  * If it’s something he thinks/knows he’s good at, won’t be as willing to take criticism (relates back to failing). 
  * Enjoys cooking. 
  * Has burn marks that have healed a little bit. Is self-conscious of them. 
  * Would let his hair grow if he’s not near anywhere to cut it. As long as it doesn’t get in the way, he couldn’t care less about it. 
    * If it does get too long, he’ll cut it himself. 
  * He likes his eyes.
    * After waking up, he isn’t sure why. He thinks it’s probably because he can be intimidating if he wants to be. Kinda like a real heroic knight. But even though he likes that explanation, it doesn't feel exactly right. 
    * It’s actually because, before the Calamity, people told him he had a mix of his mother and father’s eyes. Not as dark blue as his father's, but not as light as his mother’s. A nice in-between. 
  * Likes to impress people. He’s always liked to show off. He was one of the youngest knights in training, being chosen by the princess at such a young age, and took pride whenever he did something well. He liked the praise he got when he learned a new technique. 
    * Sometimes he’ll do something super impressive and not think twice about it. And sometimes he’ll do something, turn around and smirk like _“you saw that, right?”_ He is just a teen after all. 
  * He never really feels like he knows something until he can add his own spin or flourish on top of it. Something to claim it as his own. For example, he’ll spin his sword handle around his hand when he’s waiting or occasionally when he draws it. 
  * A good listener, but not good at offering advice. If someone asks for it, he’ll direct them to someone better equipped than himself. If hard pressed, though, he’ll try. It’ll be bad advice, but he’ll try. 
  * Bad at teaching things to people he doesn’t know. Better at teaching friends, since he feels more comfortable around them and doesn’t think about what he has to say. 
    * If asked for fighting tips, for example, he’ll be like “idk?? fight good??” and will ask the person to show him. That way he can see what they’re doing wrong, critique them, and hopefully help. It may seem a little mean, going around and pointing out how they’re doing x, y, z wrong, but it’s the best way he can help. Considerate enough to not do this unless asked though. Or if they might hurt themselves. 
    * Again, if it’s a friend, he’ll be more comfortable. May through in a little light teasing, depending on who it is. May even help them adjust their stance with some light touches if he’s close enough with them. This will be the only time he’ll offer advice not explicitly asked for too. Like if they can’t hit a target, he’ll chime in with some friendly pointers. 
  * Will sleep sitting up, around a fire. It’s easier to fend off an attack and allows him not to fall into a deep sleep in case something happens. Also relates back to not liking to lay down when sleeping. 
  * Notices small details. Something wrong with the way a person dresses, anything out of the norm, fleeting expressions, speaking quirks. Doesn’t even notice until someone points out that they didn’t know that. 




	3. Backstory

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that a lot of this contradicts what can be inferred with the concept art. These were things I thought about before the concept art was even released, and it’s the narrative I always thought worked best with my interpretation of Link. Also, even if it comes from Nintendo, if it’s not in the game, it’s not canon. So my ideas aren’t wrong, even if they go against what Nintendo thought up since it’s not official. Just let me live.
> 
> Also, this may be my most "controversal" hcs yet. I talk about Link's relationship with Mipha, because (again, personally) I think he had something like one. If you ship them, then you may agree with my interpretation. If you don't, then you may be fine categorizing it as pre-relationship with whoever you do ship Link with. Or his only relationship if you don't ship him with anyone at all. But it's only 1 major bullet point so...?

  * His father was a high-ranking knight, his mother was a seamstress. Because of his father’s position, they lived in Castle Town. He was told he looked like his father and acted like his mother, from the parents of his friends. 
    * He always kinda wished he looked more like his mother. He was around her a lot more, since his father was often away. 
    * As he grew, it became more obvious how much he took after his father. Even if he wasn’t around him much, things like his mannerism, expressions, and way of holding himself seemed to inherited by Link. He didn’t miss how his mother would look at him, and see his father. 
  * His father was caring but strict. When he was home, he taught Link to hunt. Much to his dismay, Link was more focused on exploring than hunting. However, after they came back from their hunt, his father would agree and occasionally add commentary when Link told his mother about their “adventures”. 
    * The day Ganon attacked, Link was just a little bit proud, knowing he fought alongside his father. He knew his father was proud when he was chosen as the princess’ personal knight, and he hoped to make him proud now, too. 
  * His mother was compassionate and kind to everyone. A seamstress and near-picture perfect housewife, she fed Link’s love for adventure with stories of the adventures of her youth. She traveled Hyrule with _her_ mother as an apprentice and fell in love with all that she saw. It was on her travels that she met Link’s father, and fell in love him with him too. 
    * Link always wondered why, if she loved seeing the world so much, she would stay in this one little town? She always told him it was because her favorite place in the world was when she was with him and his father, which was true, partially. 
    * The full truth was that she wanted to have another baby— maybe a little girl. Link’s parents decided to try, right before Link was revealed to be the goddess of courage incarnate. After he started his training and moved into the castle, his parents agreed to stop trying, lest he think they were replacing him. 
  * Link never fully remembers his parents after waking up. Bits and pieces sometimes, but nothing substantial. And that’s not entirely due to the amnesia. When he was going to fight Ganon, he saw his father running into his house, the same house his mother was in, to try to save her. Just as he had entered, a Guardian fired, burning down their house, and many others around it. The traumatic event forced him into a state of shock and was blocked from his mind as he went to face Ganon. It, and many other memories of his parents were erased during his hundred-year slumber. 
  * Link was close to Mipha. Their friendship started humble enough; meeting during champion meetings. He noticed how she acts differently around him and thought it was cute, in a way. He watched her try and sneak to be close to him but never engage him; avoid his eyes, but still seek his company; talk about him but rarely to him. It was amusing to watch. 
    * Maybe that’s mean, but he was sixteen at the time; he didn’t know anything about love or relationships. He just knew that when he talked Mipha listened. When he wanted attention, she gave it to him. If he ever wanted to be seen as more than Zelda’s bodyguard, he didn’t need to look farther than her. 
    * And then that one-sided admiration blossomed into a friendship. They spent more time together and connected in a way neither expected. They were both tasked with such huge responsibility, but neither knew how to act. Urbosa was the leader of the Gerudo, she was competent and shouldered being a champion with grace and pride. Revali revealed in the attention and wasn’t on very good terms with either of them. Durak was stable in the face of challenge and danger like he was all the time. Zelda understood, a little, but she was a superior to Link. And that’s where Mipha came in. 
    * She understood what it was like to have a huge responsibility placed on you, so many looking st you to succeed. She listened well and offered good advice. She never turned Link away and made him feel wanted and heard. 
    * As their time together grew, so did his feelings. The idea of being with Mipha, dating Mipha, _marrying_ Mipha wasn’t scary, but exciting. 
    * But when she confessed her interest in him, holding the Zora armor so hopefully, he turned her down. He told her, simply, that Ganon was his priority. His focus. He couldn’t be distracted. Not by anything. She nodded, said she understood. Blinked tears away and said she hoped they would remain friends. 
      * She never told her father nor people about her confession. She didn’t want them to think less of him, didn’t think they would understand him the way she did. 
      * Because she _did_ understand him. Understood him enough to know that this wasn’t a rejection. Far from it. It was a “someday, but not today”. It was a postponement, not a denial. 
    * Her suspicions were confirmed when he leaned in close, blue eyes searching for something Mipha hoped he could find, and asked if he could kiss her. She had nodded in earnest. When their lips met, she felt sparks and joy and happiness and near-euphoria. No, she had told herself, this wasn’t a “goodbye”. It was an “until we meet again.” 
    * Link, after waking up, doesn’t remember all of this. Just bits and pieces. But sometimes, when he sits alone, he remembers feelings. Emotions. 
    * With those pieces, he can connect enough to know that he loved Mipha. Maybe not love-of-his-life kind of love, but love nonetheless. The kind of love comes from an impending war pushing two hearts together. The kind of love that makes you think sixteen is old enough to decide who you want to marry. The kind of love that keeps you up at night, wondering when you’ll see that person next. The kind of love he lost. 
    * Maybe Mipha wasn’t the love of his life, but she was his first love. Maybe, if things had gone differently, he would have married her. they would have lived long lives together. They would have found happiness in their love that felt like fluff and filler at the same time. Maybe if things had been different, they could have been happy together. 
  * Link never fully remembers his life before waking up. There’s enough to go off of—to get a grasp on who he was, how he’s changed. But not everything. 
    * The thing that bugs him most is his lack of childhood. He remembers a creek. A babbling brook with water so clear, it almost looked like glass. He remembers collecting rocks he thought were pretty to bring home to his mother. He remembers dashing back and forth, from side to side, with friends whose faces have been forgotten to time. He remembers running, feeling free. He remembers falling. He remembers the clear water turning red. He remembers crying, his friends rushing off to find his mother. A mother—faceless and void of any detail in his mind—that came for him with open arms and a caring touch. He remembers little details, like the counter he sits on. Hard and rough and cold. But nothing of the woman who set him there. She cared for him. She must have; she came rushing to find him when she heard he had gotten hurt. He remembers this faceless woman wrapping his knee and chiding him. Telling him to be more careful. But he can’t remember her voice or her exact words. Can’t remember if she was well-spoken or not. Just remembers the rock he gave her as something of an apology. She had taken it graciously, said something else, lost in the recesses of his mind and smiled. He may not remember what her smile looked like, but he remembers how it made him feel. Happy. Warm. Safe. And he remembers no more. 
    * Perhaps he’s better off not remember that people used to tell him how like his father he looked. Already, when Link looks in the mirror and sees twisted scars stare back at him; a reminder of his own failures, he feels disgusted with himself. How much worse would he feel to know that now, as he reaches closer to twenty, he looks more like his father than ever? Would it hurt him to know his sense of adventure, the want to help your fellow people, his general kindness, came from his mother? Would he want to know? Would it give him something to hold on to? Or would it tear him up inside? To know that he can’t even remember _that_ about the woman who raised him? 
  * Link asks Impa, nearly begging, if there’s anything he can do to remember. Or at least for an explanation of why he can’t. If maybe there’s a time frame for when he’s supposed to remember—something, anything. Impa tells him that no, there’s not. Not really. The things he doesn’t remember are blocked by his subconscious. Things related to traumatic events that have been surprised. She says it like a secret. Like a solution. Like he’s supposed to take that answer and be happy. But instead, it makes him made. Infuriates him. His own mind thinks he’s too weak. And there’s nothing he can do about it. 




End file.
